Saturday, March 12, 2011

Hello and welcome to issue #10 of Edi's Weekend Wave.
Yes, I know that Japan has been hit by a terrible earthquake and a tsunami. I will not talk about it. I dreamed about my job in the past nights which is an obvious hint that I'm under pressure. The Weekend Wave is a great opportunity for me to relax and I hope you find the content relaxing too. Let's have a look what I gathered for you.

ENJOY READING ....

Edi's Guidepost

The Lighthouse
News and information straight from the horse's mouth by Lighthouse keeper ediFanoB

Quotes
The member of the house of quotes and a quote himself the Keeper of the minutes ( we call him Kotm) fished for you

German proverbs, sayings and idioms Danish Proverbs ....

The Lighthouse

In order to relax I need to calm down first. Music is a wonderful tool for that - in case you find the right song. And this is one of my favorite ones for the described purpose:
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Last week I have been lucky to read 550 pages. I think it worked because I limited my online time. I'm happy with my reading and now I have to work on my review backlog. I read three books related to time travel. I decided to review them within March.
That means you can expect reviews of following books:

- Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
- TimeRiders: Day of the Predator by Alex Scarrow
- TimeRiders: The Doomsday Code by Alex Scarrow

I finished following book and added it to my list of unwritten reviews:
- Dissolution by C.J. Sansom
Great stuff. I like main character Matthew Shardlake and his sidekick Mark Poer a lot. Impressive characterization and an extraordinary depiction of England in 1537. It took me a long time to identify the murderer by myself.
Looking forward to read the next book in the series. Fortunately book two to four are on my shelf.

I'm
- 480 pages in Dream of Legends by Stephen Zimmer
That means I read a lot compared to last week. I have had a mail conversation with the author because I have some problems to read the book. For me there is a way too much information.
It is like the Lord of the Rings trilogy and the four Ice and Fire books put together in one book. I often get lost. Maybe it also has something to do with the way I read. I try to understand everything.

- 124 pages in Dreams of Steam, anthology engineered by Kimberly Richardson
So far I read nine of the 15 stories and I liked them all except to poems which are not my cup of tea. I expect to finish the book within next week.

- 120 pages in First Rider's Call by Kristen Britain
It is exactly what I expected. Epic fantasy with an interesting heroine. After return from the first mission Karigan needs a rest. But the next adventure is waiting ....

In the meantime I decided which book to read next.
- Dream of Legends followed by
the ARC of The Unremembered (hc, US, April 2011) [ISBN-13: 978-0765325716] by Peter Orullian
- Dreams of Steam followed by
the ARC of The Falling Machine (May 2011)[ISBN-13: 978-1616143756] by Andrew P. Mayer.
- First Rider's Call followed byThe Wise Man's Fear (trade paperback, UK 2011) [ISBN-13: 978-0575081420] by Patrick Rothfuss.

I'm excited....

Enjoy your weekend ....

Books

Dear readers, I'm the one to tell you about books - only books? What about novellas and other stuff? My name is Bona. I scour shelves, shops and the net for books. If you call me a book whore I would not gainsay you. But be aware I have my own, sometimes elusive taste.

In sum I received three books this week: One ARC, One Brick, One Red and Gold.

Today I received to my pleasure an Advanced Reading Copy (ARC) of The Falling Machine (May 2011)[ISBN-13: 978-1616143756] by Andrew P. Mayer which is the first book in series. A big thank you goes over the pond to PYR (especially Jill Maxick) for sending me the ARC.

"In 1880 women aren’t allowed to vote, much less dress up in a costume and fight crime... But twenty-year-old socialite Sarah Stanton still dreams of becoming a hero. Her opportunity arrives in tragedy when the leader of the Society of Paragons, New York’s greatest team of gentlemen adventurers, is murdered right before her eyes. To uncover the truth behind the assassination, Sarah joins forces with the amazing mechanical man known as The Automaton. Together they unmask a conspiracy at the heart of the Paragons that reveals the world of heroes and high-society is built on a crumbling foundation of greed and lies. When Sarah comes face to face with the megalomaniacal villain behind the murder, she must discover if she has the courage to sacrifice her life of privilege and save her clockwork friend.The Falling Machine (The Society of Steam, Book One) takes place in a Victorian New York powered by the discovery of Fortified Steam, a substance that allows ordinary men to wield extraordinary abilities and grants powers that can corrupt gentlemen of great moral strength. The secret behind this amazing substance is something that wicked brutes will gladly kill for and one that Sarah must try and protect, no matter what the cost. " [Source]

The cover of the second book is in red and gold. As a fan of historical thrillers/mysteries I could not resist to buy a copy of Heresy (paperback, UK 2011) [ISBN-13: 978-0007317707] by S. J. Parris

"Oxford, 1583. A place of learning. And murderous schemes.
England is rife with plots to assassinate Queen Elizabeth and return the country to the Catholic faith. Defending the realm through his network of agents, the Queen's spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham works tirelessly to hunt down all traitors.
His latest recruit is Giordano Bruno, a radical thinker fleeing the Inquisition, who is sent undercover to Oxford to expose a Catholic conspiracy. But he has hisown secret mission at the University - one that must remain hidden at all costs.
When a series of hideous murders ruptures close-knit college life, Bruno is compelled to investigate. And what he finds makes it brutally clear that the Tudor throne itself is at stake ..."
[Back of the book]

I look forward to discover this book. I hope I will like it because it is the first book in a series ...

The last book for today is the "brick" with a weight of 1.286 kg = 2.8351 lbs and a measured height of 6 cm = 2.3622 inch. "Only" 994 pages!! I talk about the second book in the Kingkiller Chronicle. It is the The Wise Man's Fear (trade paperback, UK 2011) [ISBN-13: 978-0575081420] by Patrick Rothfuss. And this is the UK cover of one of the most anticipated books in 2011

What shall I say.... Myyy PRECIOUSSS!!!!!

No more today, see you next week ......

Blogosphere

Hey, I'm Bona Fide. I just came back from my last foray through the blogosphere. What can you expect from me? I tell you: Everything from Art to Fart as long as there is any faint connection to books. And here is some honey from the beehive blogosphere...

You follow blogs and read reviews. It is your secret wish to write reviews. But there has been one barricade for you so far: The question where to post your review? You do not want to spend hours and hours to maintain an own blog. Now there is a possible answer for your question.
There is a great contest for people like you over at Speculative Book Review. This is one of the blogs I follow. They offer great reviews. As the rest of planet Earth inhabitants they are getting older and life changes with jobs, own family and more. Of course that has an impact of reading, reviewing and blogging. To keep it short needs Speculative Book Review"fresh blood" in form of new reviewers. In order to find reviewers who fit to the blog they started a contest.
In case you are interested in click on following link which leads you directly to the contest. But be aware it is not as easy as it sounds. Read all details carefully. In case you should be one of the new reviewers over at Speculative Book Review in near future, please let me know.
And now it is your turn to decide whether to follow the link or not:

Whenever I find interesting international giveaways I post about them. This week I found three awesome giveaways. I does not happen that often that you can win whole fantasy series - especially when the series are well known. Two giveaways offer to win series which have in common that they are epic fantasy and they differ in - for a lot of readers - important fact. One series has been finished and the other is still in progress. The third giveaway offers a book which is the first in a new classic space opera series.

Let me start with the epic fantasy series.

The first one is the The Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson. The tenth an final book has been published recently. A now imagine you could win all these books at once in a giveaway. A dream? No, no, no, its reality. Don't miss to take part in

Would you like to win following books A Game Of Thrones, A Clash Of Kings, A Storm Of Swords and A Feast For Crows? All these books belong to the epic fantasy saga A Song Of Ice And Fire by George R.R. Martin.

I recently finished to read Hellhole by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson
A great classic space opera. Entertaining but with a weak third quarter.
I found this part a way too predictable. But that will not hinder me to
read the next book in the series - whenever it will be written and published.
Would you like to win a copy? Then head over to Fantasy & SciFi Lovin' News & Reviews and take part

You may know that I stay in contact with author Stephen Zimmer who is one of the authors of small publisher Seventh Star Press. Today I will support Seventh Star Press by posting the latest info about new author Jackie Gambler and her first book in a new YA series to be published in April 2011. YA books are not really my cup of tea. But maybe it is something for you dear readers. Just have a look. And no, I don't get anything for this post.

Jackie Gamber's Redheart Cover Art and Illustrations RevealedSeventh Star Press is proud to unveil the cover art and illustrations to Redheart, Book One of the Leland Dragon Series, from Mary Shelley Award winning author Jackie Gamber.The first installment of the exciting new YA fantasy series is slated for release on April 19th. The cover art and illustrations were created by Matthew Perry, whose artwork appears on the covers and interiors of other Seventh Star Press authors such as Steven Shrewsbury and Stephen Zimmer.A pre-ordering window is now open for readers interested in a limited edition hardcover of Redheart, which features an illustration created especially for that version. There is also a pre-order offer for the regular trade paperback edition. Both of the pre-order offers include packages of bonus materials, ranging from 14X20 posters of one of the illustrations, to a set of four 5X7 glossy prints.Redheart invites readers into the lands of Leland Province, where dragon and human societies have long dwelled side by side. Superstitions rise sharply, as a severe drought strips the land of its bounty, providing fertile ground for the darker ambitions of Fordon Blackclaw, Dragon Council Leader, who seeks to subdue humans or wipe them off the face of the land.As the shadow of danger creeps across Leland Province, a young dragon named Kallon Redheart, who has turned his back on dragons and humans alike, comes into an unexpected friendship. Riza Diantus is a young woman whose dreams can no longer be contained by the narrow confines of her village, and when she finds herself in peril, Kallon is the only one with the power to save her. Yet to do so means he must confront his past, and embrace a future he stopped believing in.A tale of friendship, courage, and ultimate destiny, Redheart invites readers to a wondrous journey through the Leland Dragon Series.Redheart will ultimately be available in trade paperback, hardcover, and a variety of eBook editions.Sela, Book Two of the series, is targeted for a third quarter release in 2011, with Book Three scheduled for mid-2012 release in all of the aforementioned formats.

Seventh Star Press is a small press publisher of speculative fiction
located in Lexington Kentucky.

That's it for today. Come back next week for more ......

Movies

Hey, it's me Fide. I'm a remote control professional. I'm that fast that I can watch two movies at the same time.
But don't worry. All the stuff I present to you will be shown at normal speed.

On 10th July 2011 Super 8, the new J.J. Abram's film, will hit the movies. So far there has been a lot of secrecy around the film. But now the official synopsis is available:

"In the summer of 1979, a group of friends in a small Ohio town witness a catastrophic train crash while making a super 8 movie and soon suspect that it was not an accident. Shortly after, unusual disappearances and inexplicable events begin to take place in town, and the local Deputy tries to uncover the truth – something more terrifying than any of them could have imagined." [Source]

Stephen Zimmer is an author who likes to talk with his readers like you do. I appreciate it.

I remember I watched a Battle: Los Angeles trailer some time ago. I'm not surewhether I want to see the film or not.I'm sure you will take about the film on your blog. I look forward to read your comment/review.

By the way. Amazon.de shows the 9th May 2011 as the publishing date for the German edition of your upcoming novel Prince of Thorns! But I think that is not true because that would be three month before the official release!Anyhow it is a great offer for German readers because it will be published as paperback and 13 Euro is not expensive for a debut novel.

It's true - I've been a bit 'enlish-centric' with my reporting of the release date. I shall update the site. I've no reason to doubt the Heyne & Luitingh Sijthoff release dates (May in German, April in Dutch). And sure, if you have the chance to get a soft-back copy it represents less of a gamble on a new author. Enjoy!

I don't know why but I can't see your latest comment. Fortunately I received a mail with the content.Thank you for explanation concerning the release dates.But it is still unusual that translated editions will be published before the edition in original language. Of course it is good for you that your book will be published in several countries within months.By the way I ordered a copy of the German edition. That means I will read your book in German but I will write my review in English.